Residents also said they've already been flummoxed by how FEMA is
handling claims.

Resident Cathy Murphy said the agency told her they'd be mailing
her a check. But she did not know how the post office would be
able to deliver the check to her home when roads remained clogged
and her home remained gutted.

We actually located the one FEMA inspector for the area. He
immediately declined to give us any details about himself, with
one exception: he said he'd been called up from Puerto Rico. And
his car had Maryland plates:

Rob Wile/Business Insider

The area was not totally devoid of official response. FEMA and
the National Guard were staging operations out of nearby New Dorp
high school. But we never saw anyone in military fatigues, just a
lot of NYPD officers detailed to ward off looters.

Finally, we came across the main drop-off point for small item
donations. It was also being run by volunteers, and was utterly
chaotic. There seemed to be more helpers there than residents in
need.

Rob Wile/Business Insider

Rob Wile/Business Insider

Rob Wile/Business Insider

We were told by one volunteer that the operation was being run by
"the guy in a maroon shirt."